The Way to True Peace and Rest, Sermon 1
THE FIRST SERMON, VPONUPON THE PREPARATION TO THE LORDS SVPPER.
1. COR. 11.2.
Let eueryevery man therefore examine himselfe, and so let him eate of this Bread, and drinke of this Cup.
WElbeloued in Christ Iesus: The Apostle in the words which we hauehave read, deliuereth his counsell, and giueth his aduice; and not onelyonly giues his aduice, but giues his admonition and command: That we should not come to the Table of the Lord, that we should not come to the hearing of the word rashly: but that eueryevery one of vsus should come to this holy worke with reuerence; that we should prepare and sanctifie our selues in some measure. And seeing we go vntounto the King of heauens Table, it becomes vsus to put on our best array. In a word, he deliuereth the whole doctrine and matter of this preparation, when he saith; Let eueryevery man, and let eueryevery wowan, trie and examine themselues. As if he would say, Let eueryevery one of you, trie and examine your soules. That is, trie the estate of your owne hearts, and condition of your owne consciences. Marke and behold in what estate your heart is with God, and in what estate your conscience is with your neighbour.
He biddeth not your neighbour to try you, he biddeth not your companion to try your heart; but he biddeth your selfe in person, to trie your owne conscience; he biddeth your selfe, trie your owne heart; because none can be certaine of the estate of your heart, or of the condition of your conscience, but your selfe.
Now he excludes not others from the triall of you neither (for it is lawfull for the Pastor to trie you,) but others cannot trie you so narrowly as ye your selues may; for no man can know so much of me as I kn… of my selfe. No man can be certaine of the estate of your heart and condition of your conscience; and yet you your selues may be certaine of it. As for others, men may iudge of your heart and conscience according to your works and effects; and except your workes and effects be very wicked and altogether vicious, we are bound in conscience to iudge charitably of your hearts and consciences. Therefore, there is none so meete to trie the spirit of man, to try the heart or conscience of man, as is the man himselfe.
The heads to be intreated of in this Sermon.Now that this triall may be the better made, ye hauehave first to vnderstand what it is that ye should trie: what ye call a a conscience, which the Apostles commands you to trie. Next, ye are to consider for what reasons & causes ye should try your consciences.
Thirdly, & last of all ye, are to know in what chiefe points ye should try and examine your consciences. Then, that we speake not vntounto you of things vnknowne, it is necessary for eueryevery one of you (seeing there is none of you that lacketh a conscience) to vnderstand what a conscience is: & as neerely as God shall giuegive me grace, I will bring you to the vnderstanding and knowledge of a conscience.
Definition of conscience, with the exposition of the parts thereof.I call a conscience, a certaine feeling in the heart, resembling the iudgement of the liuing God, following vponupon a deed done by vsus, flowing from a knowledge in the minde, accompanied with a certaine motion in the heart, to wit, feare or ioy, trembling or reioycing. Now, we will examine the parts of this definition. I call it first of all, a certaine feeling in the heart; for the Lord hath left such a stampe in the heart of eueryevery man, that he doth not that thing so secretly, nor so quietly, but he makes his owne heart to smite him, and to strike him: he makes him to feele in his owne heart, whether he hath done well or ill.
The Lord hath placed this feeling in thy heart; why? Because cause the eyes of God looke not so much vponupon the outward countenance and exterior behauiour, as vponupon the inward heart. For he saith to Samuel, in the first booke, 16.7. The Lord beholds the heart. So, 1. Chron. 28.9. he saith to Salomon, The Lord searcheth all hearts and vnderstandeth all imaginations and thoughts. Also, Ieremie 11.20. The Lord tries the reines and the heart. And the Apostle, 1. Cor. 4.5. saith, The Lord shall lighten things that are hid in darkenesse, and make the counsels of the heart manifest. So, in respect that the Lord will chiefly hauehave to do with the heart, therefore in the heart he placeth this feeling, which is the chiefe part of conscience.
I say next, that this feeling resembleth the iudgement of God: for this feeling was left and placed in our soule for this end and purpose, that we might hauehave a domesticall and familiar iudgement within our selues, to resemble and describe the secret and inuisible iudgement of the high God; a particular iudgement, to goe before that generall iudgement, in that generall and great day, where eueryevery man shall be iustified, or condemned, according to the particular iudgement that is within his owne conscience. In the meane time this conscience is left in vsus, to arrest vsus in this life, thereby as it were, to ease the liuing God at that last iudgement. For the bookes of our owne consciences, in that last day shall be opened; and eueryevery man shall receiue, according to the report of the decree that is within his owne conscience: therefore I say, that our conscience resembles the iudgement of God.
The third thing that I say, is this; It followeth vponupon a deed done by vsus: our conscience nor our heart strikes vsus not before the deed be done; our heart strikes vsus not before the euill deed be committed: no, it goeth not before the deed; but the stroke of the conscience and feeling of the heart followeth immediatly vponupon the deed, in such sort, that the deed is no sooner done by thee, but thy conscience applies it to thy selfe, and giues out the sentence against thy selfe: therefore, I say, it is a feeling, following vponupon a deed done by vsus.
And next I say, flowing from a knowledge in the minde; for except the conscience hauehave information, and except the heart know that the deede which is done is euill, the heart nor the conscience can neuer count it to be euill: therefore knowledge must go before the stroke of the conscience: thy heart can neuer feele that to be euill, which thy minde knoweth not to be euill.
So knowledge must euer go before feeling, and according to the measure of thy knowledge, according to the nature and qualitie of thy knowledge, accordingly shall the testimonie and stroke of thy conscience be. For a light knowledge, a doubting and vncertaine knowledge, makes a light and small stroke: as on the other part, a holy and solid knowledge drawne out of the word of God, maketh a heauie stroke of the conscience. So the conscience must answer to the knowledge. If we hauehave no other knowledge but the knowledge which we hauehave by nature, and by the light and sparks which are left in nature, our conscience will answer no further but to that knowledge: but if beside the light of nature, we hauehave a knowledge of God in his word, and a knowledge of God by his holy Spirit working in our hearts, our consciences will then go further, and excuse or accuse vsus, according to the light that is in the word. So that the conscience is not acquired or obtained at what time we are enlightened by the working of the holy Spirit, & hearing of the word of God: but our conscience is borne with vsus, is naturall to vsus, and is left in the soule of eueryevery man and woman: and as there are some sparks of light left in nature, so there is a conscience left in it; and if there were no more, that same light that is left in thy nature, shall be enough to condemne thee. So the conscience is not gotten or begun at the hearing of the word, or at that time when we begin to reforme our selues by the assistance & rene…ing of the holy Spirit: but eueryevery man by nature hath a conscience, & the Lord hath left it in our nature; and except that this conscience be reformed according to the word of God, that same naturall conscience shall be enough to condemne thee eternally: therefore, I say, flowing from a knowledge of the minde. Last of all, I say, accompanied with a certaine motion of the heart: and we expresse this motion, in feare, or ioy, trembling, or reioycing. In very great feare, if the deede be exceeding heynous, and the stroke of the conscience be very heauie; then the conscience neuer taketh rest, for guiltinesse will euer dread. But if the deede be honest, godly and commendable, it maketh a glad heart, and maketh the heart euen to burst out into ioy. So, to be short in this matter, (for I purpose not to make a common place of i…) ye see, that in eueryevery conscience there must be two things: First, there must be a knowledge; and next, there must be a feeling, whereby according to thy knowledge, thou appliest vntounto thine owne heart, the deed done by thee. So that, as the word it selfe testifieth, it ariseth of two parts: of knowledge, according whereunto it is called science; and of feeling, according whereunto, the Con is added, and it is called Conscience. Then the word conscience, signifieth knowledge, with application.
This conscience,To what vses the Lord hath appointed the conscience to serue in the soule of man. the Lord hath appointed to serue in the soule of man for many vses: to wit, he hath appointed eueryevery one of your consciences, to be a keeper, a wayter on, a carefull attender vponupon eueryevery action done by you. So that, that action cannot be so secretly, so quietly, nor so closely conueyed, but will thou, nill thou, thy conscience shall beare a testimonie of it; thy conscienc… shall be a faithfull obseruer of it; and one day, shall be a faithfull recorder of that action. So, the Lord hath appointed thy conscience to this office, that it attends and waits vponupon thee in all thy actions. Likewise, the Lord hath appointed thy conscience, and placed it in thy soule, to be an accuser of thee; so that when thou dost any euill deed, thou hast a domesticall accuser within thine owne soule, to finde fault with it. He hath also placed it in thy soule, to be a true and stedfast witnesse against thee; yea, the testimonie of the conscience, resembles not only a testimonie or witnesse, but the conscience is as good as tenne thousand witnesses. The conscience also is left in the soule to do the part of a Iudge against thee, to giuegive out sentence against thee, and to condemne thee: and so it doth; for our particular iudgement, must go before the generall and vniuersall iudgement of the Lord at that great day. And what more? He hath left thy conscience within thee, to put thine owne sentence in execution against thy selfe. This is terrible, he hath left it within thee, to be a very to torture and tormentor to thy selfe; and so to put thine owne sentence in execution vponupon thy selfe. Is not this a matter more then wonderfull, that one and the selfe same conscience, shall serue to so many vses in a soule; as to be a continuall obseruer and marker of thy actions, an accuser, ten thousand witnesses, a Iudge, a Sergeant, and Tormentor; to execute thine owne sentence against thy selfe? So that the Lord needeth not to seeke a Sergeant, out of thine owne soule to arrest thee, for thou shall hauehave all these within thy selfe, to make a plaine declaration against thy selfe. Take heede to this: for there is neuer a word of this shall fall to the ground; but either ye shall find it to your comfort, or to your euerlasting woe. And this secret and particular iudgement, that eueryevery one of you carries about you, abideth so sure and so fast within you, that do what ye can, if ye would imploy your whole trauaile to blot it out, thou shalt neuer get it scraped out of thy soule. If ye were as malicious, and were become as wicked as euer any incarnate diuell was vponupon the earth, yet shall ye neuer get this conscience altogether extinguished out of thy soule: but will thou, nill thou, there shall as much remaine of it, as shall make thee inexcusable in the great day of the generall iudgement.
I grant, thou maist blot out all knowledge out of thy minde, and make thy selfe become euen as a blind man. I grant also, that thou maist harden thy heart, so that thou wilt blot out all feeling out of it, so that thy conscience will not accuse thee, nor find fault with thee, but thou shalt hauehave a delight in doing euill, without remorse: but I deny, that any degree of wickednesse in the earth shall bring thee to this point, that thou maist do euill without feare; but still, the more that thou doest euill, and the longer thou continuest in euill doing, thy feare shall be the great…r: you, in despite of the diuell, and in despite of the malice of the heart of man, thy feare shall remaine. And though they would both conspire together, they shall not be able to banish that feare, but that gnawing of the conscience shall euer remaine, to testifie, that there is a day of iudg…ment. I grant also, that there shall be a vicissitude▪ and that feare shall not alwaies remaine, but shall be sometimes turned into securitie; neither shall that securitie alw…ies abide, but shall be turned againe into feare: so that it is not possible, to get this feare wholly extinct; but the great…r the securitie is, the greater shall thy feare be, when thou art wakened. Thirdly, I grant that this feare shall not be blind; for from that time a man by euill doing hath banished knowledge out of the mind, and feeling out of the heart, what can remaine there but a blind feare? When men hauehave put out all light, and left nothing in their nature but darknesse, there can nothing remaine but a blind feare. So I grant, that the feare is blinde: for neither know they f…om whence that feare cometh, what progresse it hath, wherunto it tendeth, where, nor when, it shall end: therefore, they that are this way misled in their soules, of all men in the earth they are most miserable. For as long as thou maist keepe in thy mind, a sparke of this knowledge and spirituall light, in the which thou maist see the face of God in Christ, wherein thou maist see a remedy in the death and passion of Christ, and wherein thou maist see the bowels of mercy offred in the bloud of Christ; if thou hauehave any sparke of this light (albeit it were neuer so little) to direct thee, and albeit this knowledge were neuer so much wounded, yet there is mercy enough for thee in Christ: but if thou close vp all the windowes of thy soule, and of thy heart, and make them to become palpable darknesse, that thou neither knowest from whence the terror cometh, nor yet perceiuest any remedy, that is the miserie of all miseries.
We hauehave many things in generall to lament, concerning the estate of this our Countrey wherein we liue. Also particularly,Application. There is not one of you but hath great cause to take heede to your consciences now while ye hauehave time, that ye banish not altogether this light which is yet offered vntounto you, and whereof some sparks yet remaine. For I see the most part of men run headlong to banish the sparke of light that is in them, and will not rest so long as there is any sparke of it left, vntill it be vtterly banished. And when they hauehave so done, alas, what can follow, but a blinde and terrible feare in their consciences, which they can neuer get extinguished? a feare without remedie, a growing feare, and not a decaying feare, a feare that will deuoure them wholly at the last: Therefore, eueryevery one of you be carefull of this light that is within you; take heede, that the foule affections of your hearts draw not your bodies after them; see, at the least, that those affections banish not this light. And so long as the Lord offers you this light, in time craue, that of his mercy he would giuegive you the grace to embrace it, to take a new course, and yet to amend your liues while time is giuen you.
The body shall leaue the soule, and the soule shall leaue the bodie; but the conscience shall neuer leaue the soule: but whither soeuer the soule goeth, to the same place shall the conscience repaire; and looke in what estate thy conscience is, when thou departest out of this life, in the selfe same estate shall it meet thee in the gteat Day. So that if thy conscience was a tormentor to thee at the time of thy death, if thou get it not then pacified, it shall be a tormentor to thee in that generall Iudgement. Therefore, this matter would be well weighed, & eueryevery one of you should studie to hauehave a good conscience, that when the soule is seuered from the body, leauing your conscience at rest and peace with God, it may be restored vntounto you, and meete you againe with as great peace and quietnesse.
Thus far concerning conscience, what it is. I beseech the liuing Lord, so to sanctifie your memories, that ye may keepe these things; and that eueryevery one of these things may be so imprinted in your hearts, that ye may be mindfull of them all your liues.
The second thing that we are to speake of, is this: We are to consider wherefore we should trie our consciences; for what causes we should examine our owne soules & consciences. I will declare the reasons briefly. It behooueth eueryevery one of you to trie your conscience. Why? Because the Lord will make his residence in no other part of the soule but in the conscience: He hath appointed his dwelling to be in the heart of man, and in the will and conscience of man; and therefore it becometh you to make his dwelling place cleane, and to take heed vntounto your hearts.
Next, though the Lord of heauen made not his residence there, yet in respect the eye of God is an all-seeing eye, and able to pierce through the very thicknesse of mans flesh, how darke and grosse soeuer it be, and to enter into the very secret corners of thy conscience; (for vntounto the all-seeing eye of God, the most secret corner of thy conscience is as cleare and manifest, as any outward or bodily thing in the earth can be to the outward eye of the bodie:) In respect therefore that this eye is so piercing, and that he casteth his eye onelyonly vponupon our hearts, it behooueth vsus to try our hearts.
Thirdly, he is the Lord of the conscience. There is no Monarch on earth that hath any soueraigntie or lordship ouer the conscience: onelyonly the God of heauen, onelyonly Christ Iesus King of heauen and earth, is Lord of the conscience, he hath power onelyonly to saue and lose. Therefore, when thou comest to this Sacrament of the Lords Table, thou oughtest carefully to looke vntounto thy conscience, to try and examine the state of it.
Last of all, which is a chiefe reason; It behooueth thee to proue thy conscience, because the welfare and health of thy soule dependeth vponupon thy conscience. If thy conscience that is within thy soule be well, if it be at peace and rest, thy soule is well; if thy conscience be in a good estate, thy soule must needs be in a good estate; if thy conscience be in good health, of necessitie thy soule must be in good health; for the good health and happinesse of the soule, dependeth vponupon a good conscience: therefore, it concerneth eueryevery one of you to try well your consciences.
There was neuer any law made or deuised, that forbad vsus to hauehave a care of our healths; it is lawfull for vsus to seeke such things as may procure and preserue it: but the health of thy soule standeth in the health of thy conscience, and in preseruing thereof: therefore, by all lawes, thou oughtest to attend thy conscience. If thou keepe thy conscience well, thy soule is in health; and if thy soule be in health, let troubles come what will vponupon thy body, thou wilt endure them all: but if thy soule be diseased with an euill conscience, thou shalt not be able to beare out the least trouble that shall come vponupon thy body: whereas, if the conscience were at rest and in good health, that trouble could not happen vntounto thy body, but the strength of a good conscience would beare it out. Then hauehave ye not reason, and more then reason, to take heede to your consciences, to try and examine your consciences, in what estate and disposition they stand?
Now, because it is a fruitlesse thing to tell you that health is necessary,Certaine lessons to be learned, by which a man may preserue heal…h in his soule & conscience. and not to shew the way how this health may be obtained and preserued; therefore to keepe your consciences in quiet and good health, I will giuegive you these few lessons. First of all, be sure that thou retaine a stedfast perswasion of the mercies of God in Christ Iesus; examine when thou liest downe, and examine when thou risest vp, in what estate thou art with God; whether thou maist looke for mercy at his hands, or not.
Art thou perswaded of merciemercy? Assure thy selfe thy conscience is in a good estate, thou hast health in thy soule; for by the keeping of faith, the conscience is preserued, as saith the Apostle, 1. Tim. 1.19. Keepe this perswasion, preserue it whole and sound, hurt it not, bring not thy soule into doubting, stay not, nor hinder thy perswasion, if thou desire to keepe health in thy soule: for, if thou doubt, or any way diminish thy perswasion and ass…rance, assuredly thy assurance cannot so soone be hindered nor diminished, but at that very instant shall follow the diminishing of the health of thy soule; yea it cannot be, but in that very article of time shall follow the hurt of thy conscience; for faith will not dwell but in a whole conscience. Therefore, at what time thou doest any thing against thy conscience, at that very time thou losest a degree of thy perswasion of the merciemercy of God: and vntill such time as thou fall downe at the feete of Christ, and obtaine merciemercy for that wicked deede, purchase peace at his hands, and repaire thy perswasion, thou shalt euer doubt of merciemercy, and want health in thy conscience. Then this is the first lesson, to keepe health in your soules, to be perswaded of merciemercy.
The second lesson to keepe a good conscience, or to keepe health in thy soule, is this; Ye must flie, eschue, and forbeare, whatsoeuer may trouble the health of your soule, whatsoeuer may trouble the quietnes and peaceable estate of your conscience: cast it out, forbeare it, and eschue it. This generall is good. But let vsus see what it is that troubles the quiet estate of the conscience. OnelyOnly sinne; nothing but an euill nature. Therefore we must of necessitie, to keepe health in our soules, forbeare and eschue sinne; we must flie and auoide sinne. It is not possible that ye can keepe a good conscience, and serue the affections of your heart: & therefore to keepe peace and health in thy soule, thou must take leaue of thy lusts, thou must renounce the lusts & affections of thy heart, and thou must not do as thou wast wont to do: thou must not be giuen to the seruice of thine affections, & of thine appetite, to put them in execution as thou hast formerly done. But in case thine affections or lust command thee to do any thing, what is thy part? Thou must try how far this may stand with the good will of God, and how far that affection which commands thee, may agree with the law of God. Is there such an harmonie, as that thing which thine affection commands thee, may stand with Gods law and holy will? Then no question, it is a sanctified affection, thou maist put it in execution. But after this tryall, if thou finde thine affections to be exorbitant and out of rule, carrying thee from God and against his law beware of it, resist it, put it not in execution; for if thou fulfill the will of thine affections, what pleasure can it bring with it? It may well bring a flattering pleasure in the entrie, but it closeth euer with a bitter remorse in the end. Then to eschue this bitter remorse, should ye not all try your affections? Ye must examine and try them by the square of Gods law, ye must see how far they agree with his law, and how farre they dissent from it, and so farre as they are dissonant f…om that law, let eueryevery man deny himselfe, renounce his affections: and so, this triall being taken in this maner by thy selfe, it sanctifieth thine affections, maketh Christ to lodge in thy soule, maketh thy conscience to be at rest. And the holy Spirit this way maketh both body and soule to be in good health, and to reioyce. Then flie from sinne. This is the second lesson.
The third lesson is this; Study to do well. Wouldest thou keepe health in thy soule? Studie to do better and better continually: At the least, hauehave a purpose in thy heart, to do better daily, which is the last lesson. Seeing that when we studie to do best, and that the iust man, that is, the most holy man, falleth so often as seuen times a day, yea rather, seuenty times, what is thy part in these slips and snares? Though thou fall, as thou canst not eschue to fall, lie not still there, sleepe not there where thou hast falne: it is a shame to sleepe there, therefore arise againe. And how shouldest thou rise? By lifting vp thy soule, and running to the Fountaine of grace and mercy; by repairing to Christ Iesus, to obtaine mercy for thy soule, and to craue that he would send out of himselfe that measure of peace, that may put thy conscience at rest, and restore thy soule to health. So, lie not where thou fallest, but incontinent arise and craue mercy, and in obtayning mercy, thou shalt repaire thy fall, thou shalt amend thy life by repentance, and by repentance thou shalt get peace, thou shalt hauehave thy conscience at rest, and get health to thy soule. Now keepe this rule, if thou desirest to keepe thy soule in health: looke that thou sleepe not in sin as Dauid did: lie not still when thou art falne, and so fall from one sinne to another; as from adultery to murther, from murther to the next, &c. As commonly if a man sleepe in sin, and rise not in time, one sinne will draw on another; for there is no sinne alone, but alwaies the greater and more haynous that the sinne is, it hath the greater and worse sins wayting on it. Therefore when ye fall, delay not to arise, but repaire to the fountaine of merciemercy and seeke grace in time: run to prayer, run to the Church of God wheresoeuer it be, whether in the field or in the towne: run to Christ Iesus and craue mercy of him, that ye may hauehave peace in your consciences; and so by these meanes eueryevery one of you shall preserue health in your soules. By these meanes ye shall learne what difference is betwixt this liuing word of mercy and grace, which sounds in our religion; and that slaying letter that killeth the soule of eueryevery one that heares it, I meane that idolatrous doctrine of that dumbe Masse.
I mention this vntounto you because I see that many in these daies are falne to it, and the Lord is beginning to abstract his grace and merciemercy from this Countrey for the contempt of this quickning word which hath so clearely sounded here, and which our Countreymen for the greatest part (running headlong to the diuell in a dumbe guise) trauell vtterly to banish. Is not this a miserable thing that so few of you hauehave eyes to consider and discerne of the time of peace, mercy and grace, which is so abundantly offred? The Lord of his mercy giuegive you eyes in time.
Thus far concerning the reasons wherefore eueryevery one of you should trie & examine your owne consciences: and this triall ought not to be for a day or for a yeare, but it ought to be eueryevery day and eueryevery yeare of thy whole life. For that conscience that should rest for euer with the liuing God, that conscience …hich must euer behold the face of the Sonne of God, it cannot be ouer-well cleansed, we cannot looke ouer-narrowly to it. The more curious we be in searching out of this conscience, we are the better occupied: I spake of our owne consciences, I speake not of our neighbours.
In what points we should examine our consciences.Thirdly, I come to the points wherein eueryevery one of you should trie & examine your selues. EueryEvery one of you ought to trie and examine your consciences in two things: First, whether thou be at peace with God who is the Lord of heauen, or not. Next, examine thy conscience whether thou art in louelove and amitie with thy neighbour, or not. Wouldest thou know whether thy conscience be at vnitie and peace with God, or not? Thou shalt know it this way; the God of heauen can hauehave no societie nor companie with that soule which is alwaies vncleane, that is eueryevery way defiled; no he cannot.
Now I speake not so precisely that I make a soule to be fully sanctified and perfectly holy in this life: no, in this life there are wonderfull iniquities, grosse sinnes and great faults wherewith euen the righteous are defiled: but this is my meaning; There is no soule can be at peace with God, or wherewith the Lord can hauehave any societie but in some measure it must be sanctified and made holy. For God cannot make residence in a soule that is alwaies as a stinking dunghill; and therefore of force in some measure it must be sanctified: there must be so much made cleane in one corner or other of that soule, wherein the Lord of heauen by his holy Spirit may make his residence.
Now let vsus see whereby the heart is sanctified. Peter, Act. 15.9, saith, That the soule of man is purified by faith, that the heart of man is purged by faith. So faith openeth and purgeth the heart. By faith in Christ Iesus and in the merits of his bloud we hauehave peace with God: Being iustified by faith, we hauehave peace towards God through our Lord Iesus Christ, saith the Apostle, Rom. 5.1. Now then this point cometh in, That ye are to proue your selues whether ye be in the faith or not; as the Apostle saith, 2. Cor. 13.5. Proue your selues whether ye are in the faith. Examine if your soules be seasoned with this faith, for if ye hauehave not faith in Christ, Christ is not in you; and if Christ be not in you, ye are in an euill state, ye are in the estate of the reprobate and damned. So eueryevery one ought to looke carefully and see if he hauehave a beliefe in the bloud of Christ or not: whether he belieue to obtaine mercy by his merits, and sanctification by his bloud or not. For if thou hauehave no measure of this faith, thou hast no measure of peace with God, by reason our peace with God is ingendered and groweth daily more and more by true faith in Christ.
Now this faith where it is true, where it is liuely and couples the heart with God, as I hauehave alreadie said, it must breake forth in word and deede, it can by no meanes be held in, but it will breake forth. It must breake out in word in glorifying the God of heauen who hath forgiuen vsus our sinnes; it must breake forth in word, by giuing a notable confession of those sinnes wherein we hauehave offended him. It must breake out in deed in doing good works, to testifie to the world that thing which is within thy heart; to testifie to the world that thou who hast this fai…h art a new man; that by thy good example of life and conuersation thou maist edifie thy brethren, the simple ones of the Church of God, and that by thy holy life thou mayest draw sinners to repentance, that they seeing thy good light may be compelled to glorifie God in thee.
Then in the first point of triall let vsus looke to these three, to the heart, to the mouth, to the ha…d. Take heed that there be an harmonie betwixt these three, for if the heart be inwardly coupled with God, there is no doubt but the mouth will outwardly glorifie him; and if thy heart and mouth be renewed and be one, of necessity thou wilt expresse it in thy conue…sation. There must be an agreement betwixt the heart and the hand, thy conuersation must be changed with the heart, and be holy, honest, and godly as the heart is. So that if thy conuersation be good, it is a sure token that thou art at one with God: but if thy conuersation be not good, speake what thou wilt, thy heart is but defiled, this true and liuely faith hath no place in it. Then wouldest thou know when thou art at one with God? When thy conuersation, thy heart and thy mouth say all one thing, then without question thou hast the worke of faith wrought by the holy Spirit in thy heart, which maketh thee to be at peace with God. This is the first point wherein ye should trie your selues.
The next point is louelove, ye must trie whether ye be in louelove and charitie with your neighbours or not: for as thou art not coupled with God but by the hand of faith, so thou art not coupled with thy neighbour nor ioyned with any member of Christ in this world, but by the hand of louelove, amity and charity. Take away louelove, thou art not a member of this body: for louelove is the maister sinnew, and couples all these members of Christs bodie together, and makes them to grow vp in a spirituall and mysticall vnity: louelove is the onelyonly marke whereby the children of God, & members of Christs bodie, are knowne from the rest of the world: louelove is that holy oyle that refresheth our soules, and makes vsus like vntounto God; and the mo…e we grow in louelove, the more God by his Spirit dwelleth in vsus, for God is louelove. So that except in some measure louelove towards thy neighbour dwell in thy heart, thou canst hauehave no societie with thy neighbour, and far lesse with God. If the manners of men were examined by this rule, we should find a multitude of godlesse people in this Country, who hauehave their hearts raging with malice one against another: and where the diuell and the malicious spirit dwelleth, there is no place for the holy Spirit. And although the Lord hath gone about by all meanes possible early and late to instruct them, and to infuse into them this precious louelove and amity towards God and their neighbour, and so to alter their conditions; yet they will not suffer themselues to be wakened, vntill the great vengeance and malediction of God fall vponupon them. This louelove, this honest and godly conuersation floweth alwaies from the roote of faith. So that if thy heart hauehave faith in any measure be it neuer so little, in that same measure thou must hauehave louelove towards thy neighbour: and this louelove is neuer idle, but is vttering it selfe in one effect or other. And in respect that faith is the ground whereupon all the rest depends, and in respect that this fayth is such a Iewell, as without the which it is not possible for any of you to please God, without which all your deedes are abhomination before him, without the which you are in the greatest miserie, (which miserie is so much the more terrible, in that you are ignorant of it) is it not good reason that ye know and vnderstand how this faith is first wrought, and then nourished in your soules by the holy Spirit? that seeing how it is created, and the maner how it is brought about, ye may examine your consciences, and see whether ye may be in the faith or not. My purpose was to hauehave insisted longer on this matter then this time will suffer. Now therefore, as time will permit and God shall giuegive grace, I wil let you vnderstand how the holy Spirit imployes his trauaile in the heart and minde of man, and what paines the holy Ghost taketh in creating and forming this Iewell of faith in your soules. Yet, before I enter this worke, to let you see the trauailes of the Spirit of God in working of this fayth in your hearts: it is necessarie and more then necessarie, that ye vnderstand, first your owne miserie and infirmitie: and that ye know how the Lord was induced to recouer you out of your old estate, and to recreate you, who were lost by the fall of your father Adam.
Then to consider of this matter more deepely, I offer to your remembrances this ground: That man vniuersally and eueryevery one particularly being corrupted and lost, and that by our first fathers fall; (for if there were no more but that same first fault and sinne of his, we are all of vsus iustly condemned to a double death, both of bodie & soule for euer) Man thus vniuersallie and particularlie being vtterlie lost, without any hope at all of recouery left in his soule, without any sense of the recouery of that former estate, or repairing of that Image which he had lost through sinne long before; he being I say lost by this sinne, and left in this desperate estate in himselfe, what doth God? The euerliuing God, onelyonly wise, whose waies are vnserchable, hath found out a way, how that man this way lost, yet he may be saued: herein he sought counsell, from whom? Not from any …reature, but he counselled with himselfe; The persons of the Trinitie tooke counsell of themselues, one God was moued to seeke counsell from himselfe, onelyonly moued in himselfe: for he had not an externall principall without himselfe to induce him. So he seeking this counsell at himselfe, and being moued in himselfe thereto, as Ephes. 1.9, what doth he? When all men should hauehave died for euer, it pleased him of his infinite mercy to select out of all, and to elect a certaine number out of the lost race of Adam, that should hauehave perished for euer. In this his counsell and decree, moued I say of himselfe, and seeking counsell from himselfe onelyonly, he selects a certaine number out of this rotten race, which certaine number he will hauehave sanctified, he will hauehave iustified, he will hauehave glorified. And therefore to bring to passe the worke of their saluation: what doth he? He appoints his owne naturall sonne (for he had but one naturall son) he appoints the second person of the Trinity, his owne naturall sonne, God, in power, glory, and maiestie, as high as himselfe, equall with God the father in all things; he appoints him to worke this worke, to bring to passe this worke of our redemption, and eternall saluation. (This is but the mystery of it in some measure disclosed.) And therefore in the fulnes of time, (for he dispenseth all things according to his wisedome) at such time as he appointed, he makes his sonne to come downe, to seise himselfe in the wombe of the Virgin, to take on our flesh, to take on the likenesse of sinne; he tooke not on sin, but he tooke on the likenes of sin. What call I that likenes? Our flesh is the likenesse of sinne: he tooke on our flesh and nature, the likenes of sinne; which was perfectly sanctified the very moment of his conception, in the very wombe of the Virgin: He tooke on this flesh, that in this flesh and nature, sinne might be banished and cast out of vsus for euer. And whereas we should all of vsus hauehave gone one-way, (for there was no exception of persons by nature) Christ Iesus our sauiour hath elected vsus: and according as his Father in his secret election before the beginning of the world, had elected vsus, the same Christ Iesus in his owne time calleth vsus, and maketh vsus partakers of that saluation, which he hath purchased: and he repaires not onelyonly that image which was lost in our forefather Adam: he placeth vsus, not in a terrestriall paradise, where Adam was placed at the beginning (and what more could hauehave bene sought by vsus?) but he giues vsus a farre more excellent image then we lost, he placeth vsus in a more high and in a more celestiall paradise then we lost: For so much the more heauenly is the paradise which he giues vsus, as the second Adam is more excellent then the first, and as the Sonne of God, and God himselfe, is farre aboue any creature that euer was, man, or Angell. Therefore it comes to passe that by the benefite of the second Adam, Christ Iesus our Sauiour, the Sonne of God, (whereas had we remained in that Image wherein our forefather was created, we should hauehave setled our selues in the earth for euer, we could not hauehave craued a better paradise then an earthlie paradise for earthlie tabernacles:) By benefit of the Son of God, I say, it cometh to passe, that we are plucked vp out of the earth to the heauen, and to a heauenly paradise. And what hauehave we to do with heauen? Are we not made of the earth, to returne to the earth? Becomes not an earthly paradise an earthly body? Yet the Lord in his mercy sendeth downe his Sonne, to draw vsus vp out of the earth to the heauen. This is so high a thing that it cannot be easily considered. For this drawing of vsus to a heauenly paradise, is a thing more then could hauehave bene thought on. That we should liue the life of Angels in heauen, how could the heart of man thinke on this? Yet it pleased the liuing Lord, in the great riches and bowels of his merciemercy, and in the exceeding greatnes of the power of his merciemercy towards vsus: (the Apostle in that Epistle to the Ephesians cannot get words enough to expresse this, he knowes not how to begin, nor how to end, when he speakes of the riches of that merciemercy: and if ye looke well into that Epistle to the Ephesians, ye shall finde more high and excellēt stiles giuen to the riches of that merciemercy, in that Epistle, then in any other part of the Scripture:) It pleased him I say, of his owne merciemercy, not to giuegive vsus simply the Image which we lost, nor to leaue vsus in this earth: but it pleased him to giuegive vsus a better Image, and beside that, to place vsus in heauen, there to remaine with him for euer.
Now resteth his merciemercy and grace here? No: But that this saluation, which he hath alreadie purchased & brought about by his Sonne our Sauiour Christ Iesus, might be wholly accomplished, hauing nothing wanting in it: as he redeemed vsus, in his owne person perfectly, so he makes this same redemption to come to our knowledge, & makes vsus sure of it in our consciences: and to this end what doth he? As by his death he purchased our full redemption, so he makes it knowne vntounto vsus, he intimates it vntounto vsus; by our inward calling, letting vsus both finde and feele in our hea…ts, what he did in his body for vsus. For our Lord when he makes his seruants to proclaime this redemption, and to intimate it to our consciences, he workes this Iewell of faith in our soules, which assures vsus that the Son of God hath died for vsus. For what could it auaile vsus to see our redemption, to see our saluation, and our life, a farre off, if a way were not found out, and a hand and meanes giuen vntounto vsus, whereby we may apprehend that saluation, & applie it to our selues? What can it auaile a sicke man, to see a drugge in an Apothecaries shop, except he may hauehave it, and apply it to his sicke bodie? So to the end that this worke of our redemption and saluation may be fullie and freelie accomplished: looke how freelie he hath giuen his onelyonly Sonne to the death of the crosse for vsus, as freelie hath he found out this way and meanes, and offered vsus this hand, whereby we may take hold on Christ, & apply him to our soules. This meanes, to conclude, is faith: There is not a way, nor an instrument in the Scriptures of God whereby we can applie Christ to our soules, but onelie the instrument of faith: therefore, faith cannot be enough commended. Turne to faith, and it will make thee turne to God; and so conioyne thee with God, and make all thine actions well pleasing vntounto him. There is no good action that we do though it seeme neuer so good before the world, but it is abhomination before God if it be not done in faith, and will further our condemnation: hauing faith, all the creatures of God are seruiceable vntounto vsus, they must all conspire to the furtherance of the worke of our saluation: As on the contrarie, wanting faith, there is none of the creatures of God but shall be enemies vntounto vsus and conspire to our damnation. For faith conioynes vsus with the God of heauen, and makes vsus heauenly: This Iewell of faith seasons all the gifts and graces which God giueth vntounto vsus: all the riches of the earth is of no value to my soule without faith. And what auaileth it any man to hauehave all the knowledge and wisedome in the earth without faith? For the diuell hath all this knowledge, and is not the better. What auaileth it me to conquer all the Monarches, kingdomes, and whole riches in the earth: what can all these auaile my soule? Nothing but accuse me if I want faith. Therefore, all the benefits and gifts of God without faith auaile nothing but to augment our mise…ie: All the gifts and graces of God are abused without faith; faith onelyonly maketh thee to vse the benefits and graces of God rightly: Faith only should be sought, kept, and entertained here in this life: hauing faith, all the rest of Gods graces are profitable vntounto thee, for this Iewell keepeth them all in order and maketh them all fruitfull; whereas wanting this iewell there is nothing here on earth but it will testifie against thee.
Let vsus then speake of this faith how it is wrought in you.How faith is created in our soules. I take my ground out of the Euangelist Iohn, 6.44. where our Sauiour saith, No man can come to …e, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: In the which words we see clearly, that except we be drawne, except we be compelled, except we be thrust, except of vnwilling we be made willing by God the father, it is not possible for vsus to come to his Sonne: What is the reason of this that the Spirit of God must draw vsus, and make vsus willing or euer we come to God? Because by nature we are not onelyonly wounded and lanced by sinne and iniquitie, but as the Apostle sheweth, Ephes. 2.1. We were wholly dead in trespasses and sinnes: yea obse…ue how voide any dead bodie is of a naturall life, so voide are our soules (though they be liuing the naturall life) so voide are they of the life of God, of that heauenly and spirituall life whereunto we in this life do aspire: vntill such time that the Spirit of God draw our hearts and minds, that is, quicken our hearts and minds. No, it is not a drawing as we commonly speake, it is a very quickning of a dead thing: It is a quickning of that thing which was void of the life of the Spirit. Then except the Spirit of God draw vsus, that is, quicken vsus with that spirituall and heauenly life, it is not possible for vsus to come to heauen. And except he nourish this life which he hath begun, it is not possible that we can stand in this life: So the Spirit of God is said to draw vsus, that is, to begin this life in vsus, and by the same holy Spirit to continue and nourish this life in vsus. Now by the drawing of the Spirit our soules are quickned: and by the drawing of the Spirit I vnderstand no other thing but the framing and creating of faith in our soules, which makes vsus new creatures. Now let vsus see what order the Spirit of God keepeth, in drawing vsus and informing and creating this faith in our soules: First of all I deuide the soule into no more parts then commonly it vseth to be deuided, that is, into the heart and the mind. Our mind then being … cloud of darknesse altogether blind naturally, there being nothing in that mind of ours but vanitie, error and ignorance, whereby we vanish away & can neuer long continue in any good resolution or purpose; what doth the Spirit of God? The first worke that euer the Spirit of God doth, he taketh order with the mind: and what doth he to the mind? He banisheth darknesse, he chaseth out vanitie and blindnesse that naturally lurketh in the mind; and in stead of this darknesse he placeth in the mind a l…ght, a celestial and heauenly light, a light which is resident in Christ Iesus onelyonly: Then the Spirit chaseth out that cloud of mist and darknesse, and placeth light in the mind. And what worketh he by this light? We getting sanctified vnderstanding, incontinent he makes vsus to see God: not onelyonly as he is God the Creator of the world, but also as he is God the Redeemer, and hath redeemed vsus in his Sonne Christ Iesus. Now before I obtaine this light, what is my heart and mind doing? There is not one of you but hauehave experience as I my selfe hauehave, in what estate the heart and mind is before that this light enter: The mind lieth drowned in blindnesse, and the heart is hardned, and they both conspire together in vice to set vp an Idoll in stead of God, a domesticall and inuisible Idoll: what sort of Idoll …s that? No doubt some worldly or fleshly affection or other: this is set vp in the throne of thy heart; and on this Idoll thou bestowest the seruice of thy whole heart, of thy whole mind, of thy whole soule and bodie: So that the seruice of thy soule and bodie which should be bestowed vponupon God onelyonly, is imployed vponupon that Idoll which is set vp in thy heart, that is, in the place of God, in the stead of the most high God. And thou art more addicted to the seruice of that Idoll then euer thou wast to the seruice of the liuing God: yea vntill such time that this Idoll of ours be banished, and that this blindnesse whereby this Idoll is serued be tak…n away, there is not one of you but are seruants to one lust or other; and thy soule that should be consecrated to the seruice of the liuing God, is imployed vponupon one affection or other, vponupon some worldly or fleshly lust of thine owne. But from the time that the Lord beginneth to scatter the clouds of our naturall minds and vnderstanding, and beginneth to chase away this thicke mist of the darke soule, and placeth therein some sparke of heauenly light which floweth out of Christ, and whereas we were children of the night and darknesse before, he maketh vsus to be light in the Lord, and to be children of the light and of the day. Then we see that all the things in the world besides the liuing God, are vanities, deceiueable allurements, vnconstant shadowes, fleeting and flowing without any abiding: and then we see that our hearts and our minds were set on euill continually. Then we begin to abhor that Idoll, and to seeke to serue God onelyonly. Now except the Lord of his merciemercy and goodnesse place in vsus this light, vntill such time as we get some glimmering of this light, we can neuer see our owne vanitie, nor yet see God.
This then is the first worke of the Spirit, he banisheth darknesse and errors, & placeth light in our minds. Now this first worke of the Spirit, is tearmed oftentimes in ye Scripture vnderunder the name of faith: for the mind hath it owne assent and perswasion in ye owne kind as wel as the heart hath: & therefore the mind being illuminate and seasoned with this light, the assenting & knowledge in the same mind is called faith. The Apostles and Euangelists giuegive to this knowledge the name of faith: for from the time that thou once hast an eye to see God, and whom he hath sent Christ Iesus, when once thou gettest a sight of him and accesse to him, if it were no more then in the mind, it is called faith.
But we must not stand still here; if faith go no further then the mind, it is not the faith that we are seeking For the faith that iustifieth and doth vsus good must open the heart, as well as it openeth the mind; it must banish that Idoll and affection out of the heart, and in stead thereof place a throne for Christ Iesus. So that except the good Spirit of God go further then the mind, and banish this Idoll as well out of our hearts as out of our minds, we hauehave not that iustifying faith whereby we may looke for merciemercy. Yea the Spirit of God must not onelyonly stay at the inlightening of thy mind, but it must mollifie this heart of thine and change thine affections. And whereas thy affections were wicked and euill, Gods Spirit must change thy will: and he neuer can change thy will except he make the ground of thy heart good, that it may be set on God, and bring forth good fruite abundantly to the owner.
And what teacheth this? This teacheth you to seeke for an honest heart, and to seeke instantly vntill ye obtaine it. For what auaileth it any man to know what is good or what is euill, except he hauehave a way shewed him, how he shall eschue the euill, and a meanes giuen him to make himselfe partaker of the good?
Is not this an idle and vnprofitable knowledge to me, to see a farre off and to know that this is good for me, when I find not a meanes how to be partaker of that good that it may be especially good to me? Is it not an idle knowledge also to perceiue that this is ill for me, that it will do me hurt if I do it; and yet that same very thing I will do, & no other?
So the Spirit of God linketh these two together in this worke; and as he reformeth the mind, he reformeth also the heart and maketh you to be partakers of that good which ye see; and to eschue that euill which ye perceiue. And this is the second worke of the Spirit, not onelyonly to present a thing to thee, but to make it thine in effect. For howbeit the mind would do this part neuer so well, and let thee see that Christ is thine, and present him to thee neuer so often; yet if thy heart be not reformed, that will and crooked affection that is in thy heart, will preferre it selfe to Christ, and will make thee to account all but follie in respect of that Idoll.
And therefore it were an idle and a foolish thing to me to see my saluation, except I get grace to be partaker of it: and what auaileth it thee to see the works of the diuell, to see thine owne sinnes that slay thee, except thou get grace to eschue them? And so the second worke of the Spirit is this; he enters into the heart, he danteth the heart and wonderfully changeth it, making the will of it obedient: he mollifieth the affection which was hard before, in such sort that it is made to poure out thy affection in some measure on the liuing God, whereas it was poured out on one Idoll or other of thine owne before. Then except the heart wil do his part as the mind doth his part, the whole soule is not consecrate to God: for God hath not made the soule that the heart should serue thee, and the mind onelyonly should serue him; but thy seruice is then onelyonly acceptable to God when thou consecratest thy heart as well as thy mind to him.
Now this matter is so cleare that it needeth not to be illustrated by similitude: yet to make it more plaine vntounto you,A similitude of the apprehension of the corporall foode, to illustrate the spirituall. I will shew you by a similitude, that the apprehension of the mind is not enough except ye get the apprehension of the heart also. In corporall things, in meate and drinke which serue for the vse of your bodies, there must be of this meate and drinke two sorts of apprehensions: and as there is two sorts of apprehension of the meate and drinke that is the foode of the body: so there is two sorts of apprehension of the body and bloud of Christ Iesus, which is our meate and drinke spirituall. Of meate and drinke corporall there is an apprehension by the eye and by the taste, that while the meate is present vntounto you on the table, your eye taketh a view of that meate, discerneth it and maketh choice of it: and not only the eye, but also the taste discerneth the meate, and the taste approouing it, that is called the first apprehension.
Now vponupon this which is the first, the second apprehension followeth: that is, after that ye hauehave chewed that meate, swallowed it and sent it to your stomacke, where it digesteth and conuerteth into your nouriture, then in your stomacke ye get the second apprehension. But if your eye like not that meate, neither your taste like it, the second apprehension followeth not; for thou wilt spet it out againe or reiect it, preferring some other meate vntounto it that thou likest better. That meate which thou likest not enters neuer into thy stomacke, and so it can neuer be conuerted into thy nourishment: for it is onelyonly the second apprehension of the meate that is the cause of the nourishment of the body in our corporall foode; so that if ye chew not this meate and swallow it, it feeds you not; then it is onelyonly the second apprehension that nourisheth our bodies.
It is euen so in spirituall things, (so farre as they may be compared) in the foode of Christ Iesus, who is the life and nouriture of our soules and consciences. There must be two sorts of apprehension of Christ Iesus. The first apprehension is by the eye of the mind; that is, by our knowledge and vnderstanding: for as the eye of the body discerneth by an outward light, so the eye of the mind discerneth by an inward and renewed vnderstanding, whereby we get the first apprehension of Christ.
Now if this first apprehension of Christ like vsus well, then the next followeth: we begin to cast the affection of our hearts on him; we hauehave good will to him: for all our affections proceede from our will, and our affections being renewed and made holy, we set them wholly vponupon Christ. We louelove him, and if we louelove him we take hold of him and digest him; that is, we apply him to our soules: and so of this louelove & liking of him the second apprehension doth follow. But if we hauehave no will to him, if we hauehave no louelove nor liking of him, what do we? Then we reiect him and preferre our owne Idoll and the seruice of our owne affections to him; and so the second apprehension followeth not. We cannot digest him; and if we digest him not, that spirituall life cannot grow in vsus: for marke, in what place the eye serues to the bodie, in the same roome serueth knowledge and vnderstanding to thy soule: and looke in what place thy hand and thy mouth, thy taste and thy stomacke serue vntounto thy body, in that very place serue the heart and affections vntounto thy soule.
So that as our bodies cānot be nourished except our hands take, and our mouthes eate the meate whereby the second apprehension may follow: likewise our soules cannot feede on Christ, except we hold him and embrace him heartily by our wils and affections. For we come not to Christ by any outward motion of our bodies, but by an inward motion & apprehension of the heart. For God finding vsus all in a reprobate sence, he bringeth vsus to Christ by reforming the affection of our soules, by making vsus to louelove him. And therefore the second apprehension whereby we digest our Sauiour, will neuer enter into our soules, except as he pleaseth the eye, so he please the will and the affection also.
Now if this come to passe that our wils and affections are wholly bent vponupon Christ, then no doubt we hauehave gotten this Iewell of faith. HaueHave ye such a liking in your minds, & such a louelove in your hearts of Christ, that ye will preferre him before all things in the world? then no question faith is begun in you.
How faith is nourished & entertained in vsus.Now after a thing is begun, there is yet more required: for though this faith be formed in your minds, in your hearts and soules, yet that is not enough; but that which is formed must be nourished; and he who is conceiued must be entertained and brought vp: or else the louelove that is begun in me by the holy Spirit, except by ordinary meanes it be daily entertained and nourished, it will decay: except the Lord continue the working of his holy Spirit, it is not possible that I can continue in the faith.
And how must we nourish and keepe faith in our soules? Two manner of waies. First, we nourish faith begun in our soules by hearing of the word; not of eueryevery word, but by hearing of the word of God preached: and not by hearing of eueryevery man, but by hearing the word preached by him that is sent. For this is the ordinarie meanes whereunto the Lord hath bound himselfe; he will worke faith by the hearing of the word and receiuing of the Sacraments. And the more that thou hearest the word, and the otfner that thou receiuest the Sacraments, the more thy faith is nourished.
Now it is not onelyonly by hearing of the word and receiuing of the Sacraments that we nourish faith. The word and Sacraments are notable of themselues to nourish this faith in vsus, except the working of the holy Spirit be conioyned with their ministerie. But the word and the Sacraments are said to nourish faith in our soules, because they offer and exhibite Christ vntounto vsus, who is the meate, the drinke and life of our soules: and in respect that in the word and Sacraments we get Christ who is the foode of our soules, therefore the word and Sacraments are said to nourish our soules. As it is said, Act. 2.42. The Disciples of Christ continued in the Apostles doctrine and fellowship, & breaking of bread and prayers; by these meanes, entertaining, augmenting, and nourishing the faith that was begun in them. Then the holy Spirit begets this faith, workes this faith, creates this faith, nourisheth & entertaineth this faith in our soules by hearing the word preached, and by the receiuing of the Sacraments: which are the ordinarie meanes, whereby the Lord nourisheth vsus, and continueth this spirituall foode with vsus. For, obserue by what meanes the spirituall life is begunne, by the same meanes it is nourished, and entertained; as this temporall life is entertained and nourished by the same means whereby it is begun.
Then seeing by these meanes the holy Spirit begets this worke of faith in our soules,Conclusion, with an exhortation. it is our duty to craue that he would continue the worke which he hath begunne. And for this cause we should resort to the hearing of the word when it is preached, and to the receiuing of the Sacraments when they are ministred, that we may be fedde in our soules to life euerlasting.
But alas, we are come to such a lothing disdaine, or reiecting of heauenlie foode in this Country, that where men in the beginning would hauehave gone, some twentie miles, some fortie miles, to the hearing of this word: they will scarcelie now, come from their houses to the Church, and remaine there but one houre to heare the word, but rather abide at home. Wel, I say, too much wealth withdrawes their hearts; & the abundance of this word ingenders such a loathsomnes yt it is a rare thing to find out any that hauehave that thirst & desire to heare the word, as they were wont to hauehave in the beginning.
And for those that are in higher places, they wil here it seldom, or not at all: for they cannot endure to heare the thing that accuseth them, and conuicts them and therefore they auoyde it. But they should not do so, they should not shunne Christ, nor abstaine from his word that accuseth them: but they should heare the word; and as the word accuseth them, they should accuse themselues also, that thereby they may come to a confessiō of their sin, & obtaine mercy for ye same.
So when Christ accuseth thee, thou shouldst not run from him, but thou shouldest draw neere to him; thou shouldest threaten kindnesse of him, and as it were make a breach and forcible entry into his kingdome. It is not the way when thy sinnes touch thee, and when Christ accuseth thee, to run from him: no, thou shouldest then turne to him, thou shouldest confesse thy sinne, cry Peccaui, and seeke mercy: and after yt thou hast obtained mercy, this word shall become as pleasant to thee, & thou shalt take as great delight to come to the hearing of it, as euer thou delightedst to flie from it before. But alas! our lothsomnesse and disdaine is growne to such an height, that truly I am moued to beleeue firmly, that the Lord hath concluded, that we shall not enter into his rest, and that onelyonly for the great contempt of his mercy and grace, which is now so richly offred. For why? God can not deale otherwise with vsus, then he dealt with our forefathers the Israelites for the negligence of his word, which was but then obscurely preached: for then it was farre from the incarnation of Christ; and the farther that it was from his incarnation, the word was euer the more obscurely preached, vnderunder darke types and shadowes. Yet notwithstanding the Fathers that heard that word preached, and beleeued it not, they perished all in the Wildernesse except two; as ye hauehave sometime heard out of this place.
And if they perished for the contempt of so darke a light, much more must ye that are their children perish, for the contempt of the Sun of righteousnes, who is risen so plainly & shineth so cleerly now in the preaching of the Gospel; except the Lord in his merciemercy preuent you, and except ye preuent his iudgements by earnest seeking; and except ye seeke a feeling and seeke inward senses, that ye may see and feele the grace that is offered; craue againe that he will sanctifie your hearts by repentance, that ye may repent you of your sins, & leade an honest & a godly conuersation in all time to come; that both body and soule may be saued in the great day of the Lord. The Lord worke this in your soules, that ye may seeke merciemercy; & seeking merciemercy ye may obtaine mercy; and in merciemercy, ye may lay hold on Christ, and that for his righteous merits. To whom with the Father, and the holie Ghost, be all honour, praise and glorie, both now, and euer. Amen.